The Challenge Between Civilization and Savagery in Lord of the Flies by William Golding

In the novel “Lord of the Flies” written by William Golding the novels main theme was civility versus savagery. The novel is about school boys who get stranded in an island because the airplane the boys were in was shot down. The only adult who was the pilot died so the boys had to learn how to survive without any adults. The schoolboys were aged ranged from 6 to 12 and since there is no adult supervision the boys vote for a leader which causes conflict with two boys. Things begin to get out of hand because they are free from any rules resulting in them acting like savages and forgetting about civilization. The conflict between the two boys named Ralph and Jack represents civility versus savagery because Ralph becomes leader and uses his

after him.”(7) Ralph wanted to be a leader and everything he does speaks to this desire whether that be putting down Piggy or standing up to Jack. But, Piggy while not popular, had great ideas. When the other boys are attracted to the sound of the conch, Ralph acts like it was his idea

The human mind is made of up two instincts that constantly have conflict: the instinct to live by society’s rules and the instinct to live by your own rules. Our civilized will has been to live morally by law and order, and our savage will has been to act out for our own selfish needs. We each choose to live by one or the other depending on how we feel is the correct way to live. In this allegorical novel, William Golding represents the transformation from civilization to savagery in the conflict between two of the main characters: Ralph who represents law and order and Jack who represents savagery and violence. Lord of the Flies has remained a very controversial novel to this day with its startling, brutal, and truthful picture of the

Imagine being stranded on an island without hope or assurance of help being on the way. This is the scenario William Golding presents in his novel, Lord of the Flies. Golding uses many symbols throughout his novel to help shape the theme of how the flaws of human nature create the flaws within a society. Jack and Ralph interact throughout Golding’s novel to demonstrate how the flaws in human nature cause the flaws and chaos in a society. Jack begins to show his oppressiveness and power hungry characteristic not too long after he separates himself from Ralph.

After World War II countries were in shambles, overran with fear that was fueled by the abundance of hate and violence that stemmed from Germany. The plentiful amounts of evil William Golding was witnessing drove him to write Lord of the Flies. Form this, we can conclude that aspects of his story are an allegory to what Golding observed throughout the war. In his story, William Golding expresses the importance of a civilization’s nature to be ethically correct and explains that without the precise guidance, the natural savageness of humans can prevent society from thriving. Golding’s statement is correct because without society’s moral compass humans would revert to their savage nature, pray on the weak, and would be driven toward aggression.

Rather than letting his full savage instincts pour out, he tries to keep them secluded. He witnessed traumatic events, and even shows signs of PTSD, leading to a mental breakdown. On the inside he is fighting a mental war between staying civilized or succumbing to his internal savagery. As the trend shows this is reflected in his physical appearance as he is depicted as a slender boy, and although he doesn’t wear a shirt for parts of the book he often wears clothes that are ripped and worn down, leaving holes and gashes in his body and in his clothes. This can be interpreted as almost mimicking his internal war, externally seen as worn down, beat up, dirty boy struggling to hang on to the polite, civilized English boy outside., as iInternally Ralph he tries to stay civilized even though he so clearly lost his innocent witnessing the loss of his friend and desperately wanted to succumb to the savagery that is a part of his blood.

Lord of the Flies is the name given to the inner beast, to which only

In Lord Of The Flies, William Golding uses a fictional being in the young boys minds to introduce the idea of savagery within human beings. For example in chapter 5 Simon states his opinion on the beast that everyone on the island fears, Simon says, “ maybe there is a beast...maybe it’s only us.” Through this statement Golding displays the idea that evil resonates within them all. Thus showing the reader that the fear that was among the boys all along was soli created by their evil acts and intentions. This fear can be seen, when the idea of a “beast” was first introduced to the novel in chapter 5, Ralph “remembering the beast, the snake…the talk of fear.” brings up the beast but the idea is quickly counter attacked by Jack saying, “...as

Humans kill, whether it be animals, insects or people. The justice system is used to try and fix what others have done and in this way they are punished. They are punished in a functioning society with rules and laws, but when all that is stripped away, we are left with mass destruction and humans that kill. The novel Lord of the Flies, published in 1954 and written by Nobel Prize winning author, William Golding, portrays the violence and eradication of a functioning society through young boys stranded on an island. Golding uses the symbol fire and forgetfulness of the need for it to develop the theme of the loss of society and creation of uncivilized destruction.

Afterwards, Jack publically called Ralph a coward, and this led to Ralph slipping into a depression. Ralph’s rule on the island came to an end when Jack became the more trusted leader. This took its toll and Ralph’s self esteem and confidence, and he slowly had to figure out how to avoid the others instead of simply surviving. This all was caused by Jack’s confirmation that the beast exists. Ralph was unsure of what to do; how can he keep his civil mindset when they are so terrified of the beast? He was faced with both internal and external struggles throughout the entire book, but most importantly here. With the rest of the boys on a search for blood, Ralph’s in particular, he must choose whether to continue running from certain doom, or give in to the savagery. By agreeing to go get food from Jack, he unknowingly subjected himself to the beast. One of the boys, Simon, paid the price of their wild and childish ways with his life. Ralph tried to convince himself and others that the murder was an accident, and they were still good, innocent people. But the beast that was present inside each and every boy, including Ralph, had emerged. Since earlier in the novel Ralph had given himself the job of the reasonable, trustworthy one, “He was vexed to find how little he thought like a grown-up...” (Golding). After their rescue from the island, “Ralph wept

In the novel, Lord of the flies,written by William Golding illustrates symbolism through the life of the boys; therefore we have simon's isolation and piggy's intelligence and jacks chaos.

The novel “Lord of the Flies” was written by William Golding to demonstrate the problems of society and the sinful nature of man.

Civilization today has become almost completely reliant on technology. Almost the entire planet is connected by phone lines, roads, air travel, or the internet. People converse with others thousands of miles away through modern connections, watch live broadcasts of news in foreign lands, or talk on wireless phones by use of satellites. We are governed by laws designed to protect us. We live in heated homes with fresh water and electricity. We commute to work by car or mass transit. We live by rules, values, and ideals that keep the peace. Our world is organized, convenient, and technologically advanced. What would happen if suddenly our civilization

"Man has demonstrated that he is master of everything - except his own nature." This quote from Henry Miller demonstrates that even the best of people can be tempted and twisted by their own nature. Like the symbolic pig’s head stuck in the calm forests clearing, all beauty and innocence can be mutated when order is overthrown by impulse actions. In William Golding’s novel, Lord of the Flies, a central theme exists demonstrating the deterioration of civilization, and the overpowering of savagery, leading to the abandonment of moral thoughts and actions within a person. The beauty of the island is burned away slowly as the fiery demon of savagery attempts to overwhelm the boys. The beauty of the island symbolizes the charm of law and

One of the most crucial components of a storyline is the theme. It is the central message of the story. In the novel Lord of The Flies by William Golding, the message is that even the purest of hearts contain an innate animalistic behaviour. As suggested in the story, savagery is inherent in all beings because true evil lies within one’s genetics, personality, and their surroundings.